iPhone 11 takes Apple ahead of Microsoft in $1 trillion market cap

The pent-up demand for its newly-released iPhone 11 series has made Apple the most valuable company in the US again, ahead of Microsoft with a $1.07 trillion market cap.

Sailing through the US-China trade war that may impact its devices too, Apple stock has reached $236.21 to beat the previous high set just over a year ago.

The news that Chinese and American trade negotiators have reached a preliminary agreement aimed at easing the ongoing trade war between the two nations after holding a new round of high-level talks in Washington, DC, also helped Apple as a proposed 15 per cent tariff looms on $156 billion in Chinese goods, including smartphones and other consumer goods, from December 15.

At the moment, only two US companies — Apple and Microsoft — are in the $1 trillion market cap bracket, with Jeff Bezos-led Amazon inching closer.

Apple shares are about five times higher than they were when Tim Cook became CEO of the company in August 2011, reports Barron’s.

The rally owes partly to a report by the Nikkei Asian Review claiming that Apple is ramping up production of its three iPhone models by as much as 8 million units or 10 per cent of its production.

Apple’s weak rally in Q4 2018 was largely driven by concern over iPhone demand. The tables have turned, and this time Apple is set for a record sales riding on aggressive pricing and attractive discounts in countries like India.

The Cupertino-based iPhone maker is expected to report Q4 results on October 30.

The iPhone 11’s pricing strategy has worked well for the consumers in India too as the devices went out-of-stock at both Amazon India and Flipkart in just three days after the pre-booking was thrown open on September 20.

The increase in orders appears to validate Apple CEO Tim Cook’s new strategy of enticing budget-conscious consumers with cheaper models amid the weakening world economy.